To get a coffee shop license in Thailand, secure a municipal Food Shop Permit (restaurant license) and align your build-out with health and fire codes before inspection. Form your entity (most operators use a Thai limited company), sign the lease with landlord consent to operate F&B, and prepare: company affidavit, lease, ID/house registration copies, floor plan, kitchen layout, grease-trap specs, ventilation plan, seating count, waste-disposal contract, and photos. Fit-out to code: washable surfaces, separate hand/ware sinks, hot/cold potable water, grease trap, fume hood/ducting, pest control, adequate toilets, emergency lighting, and clear fire exits. File at the local district/municipality; typical review is 10–30 business days and fees are in the low thousands of baht. Add-ons: Excise liquor license (if serving alcohol), tobacco retail license, signboard tax registration, and music public-performance licensing. Register VAT once annual revenue exceeds THB 1.8M; enroll employees in Social Security within 30 days. Foreign-run cafes commonly structure shareholding to comply with the Foreign Business Act; for foreign staff, plan for work permits (often 2M THB paid-up capital and four Thai employees per permit). Common pitfalls: under-sized grease traps, missing landlord consent, unapproved hood discharge, and signage installed before tax registration. Keep SOPs and cleaning logs for inspection.
